Already in his sixth top-flight season at the age of just 24, Rory Clegg is a man now mature beyond his years.

Thrust into the Newcastle Falcons side only two months after leaving school he has already earned his move to the big smoke, been capped by England Saxons, won a Premiership title and returned to his hometown club.

It might feel like rugby’s answer to dog years, but the 2014 version bears all the hallmarks of someone bouncing back from all that life has thrown at them.

Relaxed, just getting on with it and not letting obstacles halt his progress, his steady goal-kicking and unfussy game management have been at the heart of the Falcons’ recent revival.

Even as a replacement for tonight’s European Rugby Challenge Cup visit of Stade Francais he has a major role to play, helping starting fly-half Tom Catterick find the right balance in a head-to-head battle with South African international Morne Steyn.

“Tom might not have had a load of experience playing fly-half at this level but I know he is a great player who will do the job,” he says of his former Barnard Castle school-mate.

“If I can just give him some pointers to help control the game then that is part of my role, but I have got full faith he will do it.

“He is a strong person who can more than look after himself, and he has the right people around him with Adam Powell and the others.”

Clegg has certainly had to fight his way into the frame after what he admits was a disappointing first season back at his boyhood club, insisting his goal-kicking was the only positive he could take as Newcastle stayed up only by the scruff of their necks.

A new pitch, a fresh start and a refusal to dwell on the negatives have served him well, even with summer signing Juan Pablo Socino having offered sustained competition for the No 10 shirt.

The Argentinean has been shifted to the centres to form what looks a promising partnership with Clegg, who said: “Juan has done really well.

“He definitely looks more comfortable in the No 12 shirt, and I am not just saying that because I have been at 10!

“The back-line is starting to click more. We have a lot of good experienced players there now and hopefully on this artificial pitch we will see a lot more rugby played when the weather allows.”

Kicking three from three to claim a losing bonus point against Sale last weekend, Clegg’s 11 from 15 attempts make him the league’s 12th hottest boot with a 73.3% conversion rate.

“Having to do the goal-kicking is not a problem for me. I have done it my whole life, and I am comfortable with that pressure,” he said.

“Kicking for goal, out of hand and at the restarts are all strong parts of my game, and one of the only positives I took out of last season was my goal-kicking.

“I have always kicked like that, pretty much.

“I might have tweaked it here and there over the years, but I have tried to make it a simple technique.

“What you get with me is pretty straight up and down, and you tend to find that fiddling with your technique too much is when things can start to go wrong.”

Relishing the variety offered by Europe against a Stade Francais club who were twice beaten finalists in the Heineken Cup, Clegg said: “European rugby is a different kind of challenge because you are not up against the same players you face week in, week out in the Premiership.

“Stade Francais are a pretty illustrious side and have long been up there with the very best in Europe, so it is a great opportunity for us.

“They will be a typical French side, although the array of players in their squad is so wide that it has been hard to know who we will be up against prior to the team announcement.

“They have been going well in the Top 14, they are quite solid in their set-piece and that is where we have got to front up.”

The Parisian side, coached by 1999 World Cup golden boot Gonzalo Quesada, are currently third in the French league behind European champions Toulon and Clermont.

Like Newcastle they have wrapped a number of their stars in cotton wool for the European competition, with Sergio Parisse, Jules Plisson, Pascal Pape and Waisea Vuidravuwalu among those not even registered.

“No team likes coming to Kingston Park on a cold Friday night, and French teams can be a bit hit-and-miss on the road,” said Clegg

“If we can catch them on an off-night then we would take that, but we will be going for it regardless.

“We have got a bit of a younger side going up against them, but it is a chance for the lads who are stepping in.

“After we won the last two Challenge Cup games everyone was looking forward to this double-header, and it is a chance for us to really push on in the tournament.”